Everyone is excited to be back from Christmas break this year… especially since we have about four more months until the next break in April. Administration has made a decision to take away the February break, even though many believe that the time off is much needed.

Ironically, both deans, Mr. Clarke and Mr. McDonald like the idea of having February break, just like most students. Both Clarke and McDonald don’t know why a lot of districts are going this way. Instead of having February break, most school departments are going back to school after Labor Day, which leads to the school year ending two days earlier than we would with February break.

Clarke and McDonald both think that students and teachers will definitely notice a difference in attitudes, behaviors and attendance. “Frustration will be pretty high without a mental break,” said Clarke when asked about the workload and stress that students will have to go through without a break in between. Also, considering the germs in the building that are usually taken care of during the break in February, this may lead to more students getting sick.

Parents, teachers, and other adults don’t realize the amount of work students have each day in and out of school. According to Education Week, an educational blog for students, high school students on average are assigned three and a half hours of homework each night.

“I think you guys have a lot on your plate that people don’t realize…you can only go so hard until your brain says I’ve had enough” said McDonald about how much work students can handle and can’t handle without a break from the action. Sometimes homework gets to the point where kids think to themselves “which homework is more important to do” and just get the“more important” homework done because of time and also how tired they are.

We may be seeing much more of this mind set during the months of February and March. Mrs. Donna Sweet is interested in seeing how a school year with no February break will look like. Being hit with so many storms the past couple years is one reason why she thinks that administration took this break away. “I like the idea of eliminating April and February break and put in a long March break,” said Sweet. March is and feels like the longest months during the school year because of having no breaks or days off.

In the end, what Mrs. Sweet wants to see Rhode Island do is get on a “universal school calendar” to ensure that every school in Rhode Island has the same breaks and days off just like many other states. The effects of not having February break will be interesting to see this February.